The processing of medicinal plants is a pharmaceutical technology of changing the inherent properties of herbal medicines by processing the herbal medicines based on Chinese medicinal theory. Any herbal medicine is toxic or intense in nature, and thus cannot be directly taken internally, any herbal medicine has medicinal properties which easily change, and thus cannot be stored for a long period of time, and any herbal medicine can be used only after impurities and somes parts are removed. Even in the case of the same medicinal plant, the unprocessed material and the processed material have different properties or different actions. Such herbal medicines must be processed before use, and this operation is called the “processing” of herbal plants. The processing method is a traditional pharmaceutical technology and has various Korean names, including Hapwha, Hapyak, Suchi, Poja and Susa.
The objects of processing Chinese herbal medicines are to: (1) make medicine clean and facilitate the storage of medicine; (2) reduce or remove the toxicity or side effects of medicine; (3) change the nature of medicine to make the medicines more effective; (4) enhance the therapeutic effects of medicine; and (5) remove the offensive odor and taste of medicine to make it better to take the medicine.
The processing of herbal medicine is performed in various manners, and specific examples of the processing method are as follows:
(1) Roasting: this is a method of roasting herbal medicine, and the roasting temperature and time and the degree of roasting are important. In the roasting operation, heating power must be maintained at a uniform level, and continuous agitation is required for uniform heating.
1) Roasting without adding auxiliary material: this is a method of roasting herbal medicine with weak fire or strong fire to a prescribed degree.
(i) Roasting to yellow color: herbal medicine is placed in a vessel and roasted with weak fire to a prescribed degree.
(ii) Roasting to brown color: herbal medicine is placed in a vessel and roasted with weak fire, until the outer surface of the medicine becomes brown. The medicine is roasted either until the color of the section is turned dark or to a prescribed degree. Herbal medicine which is easily burned in the roasting process is wet with a small amount of clear water and roasted again or dried in sunlight.
(iii) Roasting to black or brown color: herbal medicine is placed in a vessel and roasted with weak fire to a prescribed degree, until the surface is burned black or the inner part is burned yellow. The roasted material is wetted with clear water, and then dried.
2) Roasting together with auxiliary material: this is a method in which a solid auxiliary material is placed in a vessel and a heated to a prescribed degree, and then herbal medicine is added thereto and roasted, and then the auxiliary material is filtered out.
(i) Roasting to yellow color or dark color: wheat bran is placed in a previously warmed vessel and heated until it smokes. Then, herbal medicine is placed in the vessel and agitated uniformly, and it is roasted until the color of the outer surface becomes yellow or dark. Then, the wheat bran is discarded, and the roasted material is cooled. Generally, 5-10 kg of wheat bran is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(2) Baking: this is a method of roasting herbal medicine together with a specific amount of liquid auxiliary material to impregnate the auxiliary material into the tissue of the medicine.
(i) Baking together with alcohol: about 15% alcohol is generally used, and when Soju is used, the concentration of ethanol must be adjusted before processing of herbal medicine. Herbal medicine is added to alcohol, roasted in a vessel with weak fire to a prescribed degree, and then cooled. Generally, 10-15 kg of alcohol is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(ii) Baking together with vinegar: vinegar is added to and uniformly mixed with herbal medicine, and the mixture roasted in a vessel to a prescribed degree and cooled. Generally, 10-15 kg of vinegar is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(iii) Baking together with table salt: table salt is dissolved in a suitable amount of water, and then filtered. Herbal medicine is uniformly mixed or wetted with the salt water, placed in a vessel, roasted to a prescribed degree, and then cooled. Generally, 2 kg of table salt is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(iv) Baking together with ginger: ginger is pounded, a suitable amount of water is added thereto, and the ginger solution is squeezed under pressure to obtain a juice. The juice is combined with a juice obtained by adding a suitable amount of water the ginger remnants and boiling the solution, thus preparing a ginger juice. When dry ginger is used, it is pounded in a mortar and boiled twice to make a juice. The ginger juice is added to herbal medicine, and the mixture is placed in a vessel and roasted with weak fire to a prescribed degree, until the ginger juice is completely absorbed into the herbal medicine. The roasted material is dried. Generally, 10 kg of ginger or 3 kg of dry ginger is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(v) Baking together with honey: boiled honey is dissolved in a suitable amount of hot water, and then the honeyed water is sprinkled on or immersed in herbal medicine. The resulting herbal medicine is roasted with weak fire to a prescribed degree and cooled. Generally, 25-30 kg of honey is used for 100 kg of herbal medicine.
(3) Boiling: according to the processing regulation of each herbal medicine, a liquid auxiliary material is added to herbal medicine, and the mixture is boiled until the auxiliary liquid is completely absorbed or until the white color of the inner part of the cut herbal medicine disappears. The boiled material is dried. After toxic herbal medicine is boiled, the remaining juice must generally be discarded.
(4) Heating: according to the processing regulation of each herbal medicine, a liquid auxiliary material is placed in a suitable closed vessel, and herbal medicine is added thereto and heated in water bath or steamed with water vapor, until the auxiliary liquid is completely absorbed into the herbal medicine. The heated material is dried.
(5) Steaming: according to the processing regulation of each herbal medicine, a liquid auxiliary material was added or not added to herbal medicine, and the herbal medicine is steamed by heat in a suitable vessel or steamed to a prescribed degree. The steamed material is dried.
(6) Stirring: auxiliary materials such as clean sand, seashell powder and talc are used. Sand (or seashell powder or talc) is heated in a vessel, and herbal medicine is added thereto and stirred. When the stirred material is heated to a prescribed degree, it is taken out of the vessel and sieved to remove the sand, followed by cooling.
(7) Calcination: the degree of heating with fire is important, and an operation must be carried out such that herbal medicine is soft and easily smashed. Herbal medicine is cleaved into small lumps and heated in a fire pot which does not smoke or in a suitable vessel. When it is turned red, it is taken out of the vessel and cooled. Alternatively, immediately after it is heated red, it is immersed in a liquid auxiliary material, taken out of the material and dried. Then, the herbal material is either smashed or powdered with a mortar.
(8) Fermentation
Herbal medicine is fermented using fungi at a given temperature to change the inherent properties thereof, thus creating new therapeutic effects. Herbal medicine is naturally fermented in an environment having suitable temperature and humidity. In the fermentation process, the temperature and relative humidity are preferably 30-37° C. and 70-80%, respectively.
(9) Germination
This is a method of sprouting completely ripe fruits or seeds at a given temperature and humidity. In the method, fruits or seeds are immersed in water for about 6-12 hours and placed in a vessel which is well drained, and water is sprinkled on the fruits or seeds several times a day. Temperature and humidity are controlled with wet cloth. The temperature is maintained at 18-25° C., and the water content of the seeds or fruits is maintained at 40-45%. Alternatively, the humidity is maintained by sprinkling water every day. When the seeds or fruits are germinated and grow to about 0.6-1 cm, they are taken out and dried.
Although the above-described methods can be used alone, a suitable combination of the methods (e.g., a nine times steaming and nine times drying process) may also be used.
Meanwhile, it is known that reactive oxygen species which are produced by various physical, chemical and environmental factors, including enzyme systems, reduced metabolites, chemicals, pollutants and photochemical reactions, act as nonselective irreversible inhibitors against lipids, proteins, sugar and DNA, which are the structural components of cells, thus causing various diseases, including cell aging and cancer. Also, various peroxides, including lipid peroxides which are produced as a result of lipid peroxidation by these reactive oxygen species, cause oxidative damage to cells, leading to various functional disorders, thus causing various diseases.
Accordingly, antioxidants such as free radical scavengers or peroxide production inhibitors can be used as agents for inhibiting or treating aging and various diseases, which are caused by these oxides.
In addition, in order to develop natural antioxidants, many naturally occurring materials have been studied. Most naturally occurring materials have been used in the form of simple extracts, and it is unclear what compound of the extracts is attributable to the effects of the extracts. Also, the extracts are being used in cosmetic products and the like on the basis of experience and oral tradition.